Jamie Foxx reveals what led to mysterious hospitalization in fan video: ‘I woke up 20 days later’
‘I was gone for 20 days. I don’t remember anything,’ the actor recalled
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Jamie Foxx was filmed telling a small group of people about his mysterious illness that led to him being hospitalized last year.
The Oscar-winning actor, 56, was admitted to hospital for an unspecified “medical complication” in April 2023, after which he stepped back from the spotlight for the rest of the year.
In a video shared on TikTok, a woman named Brenda Combs shared: “Saw @Jamie Foxx in downtown Phoenix today. He said April 11th 2023 he had a bad headache and asked a friend for an Advil. Woke up 20 days later with no memory of what happened. His resilience is truly inspiring!”
In the clip, Foxx explains he had a “bad headache” so “asked my boy for an Advil”. The actor then snaps his fingers, saying: “I was gone for 20 days. I don’t remember anything.”
Foxx continues to say that a doctor told him “[There’s] something going on up there” as he points to his head.
“I won’t say it on camera,” he adds, gesturing to the person filming.
The Independent has contacted Foxx’s representatives for comment.
Corinne Foxx, the eldest of Foxx’s two daughters, recently told ET that her father is “doing so great” more than a year on from the health scare.
She added that she felt “so grateful” to be working with her dad again on the musical game show Beat Shazam, which allowed her to “spend so much time with him”.
Corrine also revealed that Foxx has picked up a love of a new sport during his recovery. “He’s playing a lot of pickleball,” she said. “That man and pickleball, it’s like he’s playing twice a day every day.”
News of Foxx’s undisclosed condition and his subsequent decision to stay out of the public eye prompted speculation over the star’s health last year, with the star eventually forced to debunk various conspiracy theories and rumours.
Back in March, Foxx said that he was finally ready to share more details about the “medical complication” he had suffered – but only in a way that felt right for him.
“Everybody wants to know what happened, and I’m going to tell you what happened,” he told the audience at the African American Film Critics Association Special Achievement Awards lunch, while accepting their Producers Award.
“But I’ve gotta do it in my way,” he explained. “I’m gonna do it in a funny way. We’re gonna be on the stage. We’re gonna get back to the standup sort of roots.”
In an Instagram post shared last summer, he told fans that he’d decided to keep a low profile during his recovery as he “just didn’t want you to see me with tubes running out of me and trying to figure out if I was going to make it through”.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments